title: A review of the optical properties of alloys and intermetallics for plasmonics.
abstract: Alternative materials are required to enhance the efficacy of plasmonic devices. We discuss the optical properties of a number of alloys, doped metals, intermetallics, silicides, metallic glasses and high pressure materials. We conclude that due to the probability of low frequency interband transitions, materials with partially occupied d states perform poorly as plasmonic materials, ruling out many alloys, intermetallics and silicides as viable. The increased probability of electron-electron and electron-phonon scattering rules out many doped and glassy metals.
authors.affiliation: Institute for Nanoscale Technology, Department of Physics and Advanced Materials, University of Technology Sydney, PO Box 123, Broadway, NSW 2007, Australia.
authors.forename: M G
authors.initials: MG
authors.lastname: Blaber
authors.forename: M D
authors.initials: MD
authors.lastname: Arnold
authors.forename: M J
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Ford